"The increase is a sign that the search engine can no longer afford to operate in a Silicon Valley vacuum. For years, Google had a reputation for indifference inside the Beltway. It took Google until May 2005 to set up a presence in Washington and even then, its headquarters consisted of a one-man lobbying shop in suburban Maryland." Do the Americans among you just accept this? Is this normal? Why aren't you guys turning to the streets when your country is quite clearly being bought left and right? I mean, I'm sure this happens everywhere, but on this scale? Gives me the creeps.

What the politicians want us to do is forget about them until the next election and let them vote without any oversight.

Lack of oversight is how we end up in this position in the first place. We let the politicians pass legislation whatever they felt like, and they passed bills that benefited them and whomever was prompting them.

If we want change, we're going to have to get in their face, and let them know what we want. Have you heard about the squeaky wheel that got the grease?

Pulling a lever and hoping everything works out isn't going to cut it. It's going to take a lot of effort, time, and diligence to right the ship, and casting a vote isn't the end of your responsibilities as a citizen. That's one day out of the year. There are 364 days, 365 in leap years, left in the year where you need to make sure your representative is serving your interests.